Finding Home
by Aurora of the Northern Lights
Summary: How Luke, Thalia, and Annabeth met and became a family while on the run, how they met Grover, and how they made it to Camp Half-Blood. How the story might have gone if Luke and Annabeth had gone looking for the Golden Fleece to revive Thalia after she sacrificed herself for her friends, and how they found a home together. Disclaimer: I do not own the Percy Jackson series.
1. On The Run

Thalia stopped short when she reached the stream. Luke was a step behind her, and he almost rammed into her when she stopped so suddenly. They had been racing one another to the stream.

"So, do you think they saw where we went the day before yesterday?" Thalia asked. She was referring to the people that they had stolen a loaf of bread from the day before they had returned from town.

"I think we lost them. And I told you that you should have let me steal the food," Luke said, after catching his breath.

Thalia grinned. "Better head back to the safe house."

They had been following the James River, building safe houses along it. Their closest one wasn't very far. They had spent the last couple of nights on the streets, as they hadn't had time to get back to the safe house before nightfall. They'd just made it back yesterday at dawn. As they raced each other towards the river, Luke stuffed the loaf of bread back into his pack.

Within a few minutes, they'd reached the safe house. Luke pushed aside a door woven out of twigs and dead leaves and followed Thalia inside. Stacked inside were three sleeping bags, a blanket, an ice chest, a kerosene lamp, bronze javelin tips, a bow and a quiver full of arrows, a spare sword, and a bottle of nectar and a box of ambrosia.

Thalia dumped her pack onto the floor and began cleaning her blade on a rag. Luke crossed over to their ice chest and retrieved an apple, the last one they had left. He sliced it in half with his knife and tossed one half to Thalia.

"It's not going to be enough," Thalia said. "We'll have to scavenge from more food."

"I think we should go into town again tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Can't we go again today? We'll be back by nightfall."

"Alright, fine," Luke said, relenting. He sliced the loaf of bread from the market and split it with Thalia. "You know, the next time you try to get away with stealing food, try _not _to make such a racket."

"Alright, genius. Next time, you can do all the stealing since you're so talented at it." Thalia lay sprawled on the ground, still eating her apple. "But at least I'm better than you at sword fighting."

"Let's spar again, and we'll see," Luke said, grinning.

"Alright." Thalia, grinning as well, stood up and took the spare sword.

The fight lasted about five seconds until Thalia wound up knocking Luke's sword out of his hand and stopping her blade inches from Luke's undefended chest.

"You could never beat me in a swordfight, Luke."

"That's only because I haven't been practicing," Luke said. He'd finished his slice of bread and was staring hungrily at the rest of the bread.

"We'll eat the rest of it for lunch," Thalia said, reading Luke's mind. "But we'd better go and get something for tomorrow."

And so they began making their way back into town, following the river. It took them some time to reach the edge of the woods, and by then it was high noon already. They had purposefully built this safe house deep into the woods, as they didn't want mortals accidentally running across it, like last time.

When they reached the edge of town, Thalia immediately headed for the grocery store.

"Are you sure?" Luke asked quietly. "What if they recognize us from last time?"

Thalia shook her head. "They won't. The security cameras couldn't possibly have caught our faces, and it's a pretty big place."

Luke and Thalia split up inside the large store. Luke went upstairs to the second floor, and Thalia explored the first. She wove between the sea of people, occasionally stuffing an apple or a chocolate bar into her pack when nobody was looking. Luke was better at this stealing thing than she was. He was exceptionally skilled at breaking into forbidden places as well.

It was late afternoon before they met up again, behind the grocery store like they had planned. Already, Luke's pack was stuffed with food. Thalia surveyed the sky. It was darkening already, even though it couldn't be later than four.

"I don't think we have enough time to head back to the safe house tonight," she said. They had built their safe house rather far from town, wishing to avoid mortals as much as possible. It would take them hours to get back.

Luke sighed. "Another night on the streets, then?"

"Yeah." Thalia began to clean and sharpen all her weapons. She leaned against the wall of the building as she cleaned her knife on a rag. It was a habit, even though her knife didn't need sharpening. Luke watched her as he leaned against the wall. Thalia electric blue eyes surveyed the streets suspiciously, as if she expected to be attacked at any given second. Her whole body was tensed, even as she leaned against the wall. _You're never safe, _she'd once told him.

To lighten the mood, Luke began telling of a few of his escapades, and pretty soon he had her laughing at a trick he'd played on a waitress in a restaurant once. Thalia told him stories of her own, of how she had found a way on the streets. She avoided the memories of pain, of heartbreak, and told of the good times, of how she had made a living before she met Luke.

Their laughter echoed in the air, and for the first time in weeks, Thalia felt free, even if only for a moment. During her months on the run with Luke, she'd learned to enjoy the good moments for as long as possible, to pick up the pieces again and start over, to find the good amidst the bad.

They stayed there for almost an hour, laughing and joking about random things. Thalia had missed this. She remembered the old times, when she and Luke had sat around the lit kerosene lamp in the safe house that they'd built with their bare hands, telling stories and jokes, and sharing with each other everything. Luke was the one person she trusted above all else, and standing here, laughing with him, she didn't know what she'd do without him by her side.

"Thalia, remember when you almost killed me with a lightning bolt?" Luke asked reminiscently.

"It was an accident!"

"You know, it would kind of come in handy if you could just electrocute the next monster we come by," Luke said, grinning.

Thalia burst out laughing. "I can't control it! I can't just blast somebody anytime I want."

"Maybe you ought to practice a bit more," Luke said mischievously.

"And blow up our safe house?" Thalia sent him a death glare.

Luke, unconcerned, took out a candy bar from his pack and split it in half. He tossed one half to Thalia. Catching it, Thalia's scowl faded in spite of herself.

"Really, if you weren't such a good fighter already, you'd be stupid not to use you're advantages as a daughter of Zeus," Luke said, nimbly evading the punch Thalia aimed at him.

They spent the rest of the evening resting and relaxing in the shade, laughing at each other's jokes and stories. Day faded into night, and if someone had happened to glance at the abandoned sidewalk behind the grocery store, they would have seen a girl with short black her, electric blue eyes, and freckles, standing next to a boy with blond hair and blue eyes, two best friends, laughing hysterically at each other's jokes. It was these times that made up for all the hungry and cold nights spent on the streets, for although they were both hungry, something about that night seemed to make them forget it all.

Just then, Thalia tensed. Luke saw the movement and the laughter died from his face instantly. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a hellhound, much larger and more menacing than the one they had met last time. Thalia took out her collapsible Mace canister_. No sudden movements._ Just as he was reaching for his knife, the hellhound leapt.

Thalia immediately ducked as the hellhound leapt over her head, landing at the center of the sidewalk. The two of them scrambled to their feet as the hellhound leapt again. This time, Thalia's knife caught its underside as it whistled through the air. The hellhound roared in pain and slashed at Luke, who barely managed to sidestep it in time.

Thalia knew that she and Luke were no match for it. Her knife lay several feet away on the ground. She'd been an idiot to throw it at the hellhound and lose her only weapon. Luke had unsheathed his sword now, and was trying to get in close enough to stab it. Luke's sword found contact and the hellhound roared.

Thalia scrambled for her knife. As Luke and Thalia backed up against one another, he heard Thalia yell, "Go to the open space!"

Luke and Thalia both rounded the corner to the next block, Thalia brandishing her knife at the hellhound behind them. A stone caught Thalia and she tripped and fell, rolling over just in time to avoid being squashed by the hellhound. Her knife clattered out of her hand once again. Luke skidded to a halt and turned back, charging in front of the now defenseless Thalia. Thalia scrambled to her feet behind him as Luke slashed hard at the hellhound.

"Run, Thalia!"

But Thalia was now approaching the hellhound from behind, her own sword drawn, taking advantage of the fact that it was now preoccupied with Luke. It slashed viciously at Luke's chest. Luke twisted out of the way and its paw caught his shoulder. Luke gritted his teeth, but it was Thalia who screamed instead of Luke.

Ignoring the searing pain, Luke brought his sword up, catching the hellhound just beneath its chin. Suddenly, the hellhound's paw contacted hard with the hilt of his sword and knocked it out of his hand. The power of the momentum sent Luke tumbling onto his back. He thought he was skewered for sure. The hellhound reared, exposing its neck. In a sudden movement, Thalia stabbed it from behind, throwing her weight into the swing. The hellhound's red eyes flashed black, and it burst into flames, revealing Thalia standing behind him.

Luke scrambled to his feet. "Thalia, did I not _tell _you to run?"

After all these months, did you actually believe I would do that?" Thalia yanked Luke roughly to his feet by his uninjured arm. Her eyes flared, and Luke felt an electric shock go through him. Thalia immediately released him, wincing at her own power. "Did I hurt you?"

"No," Luke lied. His shoulder was burning.

"Luke, we'd better get you some nectar. Lucky I brought it with us. We'd never be able to make it back to the safe house by nightfall," Thalia said. She unscrewed the cap to the bottle and gently poured a few drops of the nectar onto his wound. Luke winced slightly.

"You alright?" Thalia asked, her blue eyes widening in concern.

Luke felt his face heat. "Fine," he said. "Let's find a place to sleep tonight. Like you said, we're not getting back anytime soon."

And so they hunted the streets for a dark alleyway to spend the night. It was Luke who first spotted it. It was getting colder, by now, and Thalia was beginning to shiver. Luke put and arm around her waist, as they began preparing to eat dinner. Thalia leaned against him, relaxing for a few seconds before Luke shoved a slice of bread into her hand.

"Thanks."

They ate silently, in the dark, cold alleyway. Thalia leaned close to Luke, crossing her legs. Within a few minutes, they finished off most of the bread. Still hungry, Thalia packed away the rest of the food into hers and Luke's packs. The alley was narrow, and if some monster were to corner them inside, they would have no way out.

"I'll take first watch," Thalia volunteered.

As tempting as it was, Luke knew that Thalia was tired too. He shook his head. "We just killed a hellhound today. We probably won't be bothered again for at least a couple of days. We don't need to arrange shifts tonight."

"But still…" Thalia glanced uneasily at the streets around them. "Fine. But just this once," she relented.

The two of them both leaned against the wall and prepared for sleep. Using her backpack as a pillow, Thalia slid down so that she was lying down next to Luke, the both of them looking up at the stars. It was a chilly night, and Thalia suddenly wished that they were back in their safe house, sitting around the kerosene lamp, perhaps already in their sleeping bags. A sharp wind blew, and Thalia shivered, shifting closer to Luke. His presence made her feel much safer than when she had traveled the streets alone. But it wasn't only the physical protection that he gave her, but something more. For the first time in her life, she hadn't been alone. For the first time in her life, she had someone she could depend on. She could still remember those nights alone on the streets, when she thought she'd die of hunger and cold. But most of all, she remembered how alone and abandoned she had felt, knowing that there was not one person in the world right then and there who cared about her.

"Luke?"

"Hmm?"

"Is this what it'll be like forever? Fending off monsters, fighting for a living? I want to find a home, Luke, somewhere where we can stop feeling like hunted animals?"

Luke sighed. "You know, every night, I dream of a place filled with scattered demigods brought together. Thalia, if I knew that such a place existed, I'd be able to keep going, no matter what I had to go through. The very possibility that it exists, it's…" he trailed off.

"All I ever wanted was a place to call home, someone to call family," Thalia whispered.

Luke understood what she meant. He had to admit, he'd often dreamed of that place too. A home. It had been all he'd ever wanted. He'd found a home with Thalia, but it could break at any second. It had been Thalia that had kept him going, when he was at the point of giving up.

"I just wish I had something to keep on going for. Right now, it looks like we're not going anywhere. We fight off one monster only to run into another. I just wish that there was something I could fight for, besides my own life and yours. I wish I could look forward to something bright in the future, anything at all. I just don't see the point of us fighting anymore. When I try to look into our future, I see oblivion. But if there was the slightest chance of a future for me, no matter how impossible, it would be enough to keep me going."

Luke could see what she meant. Every night, he'd pray for a sign to tell him that he had not been abandoned, that there was some place in the world for him, somewhere where he could stop running.

Thalia stared up at the sky. "Curse him," she whispered. Luke didn't have to ask who she was talking about. "Every night I pray for him, every night I dream of him coming back for me, and yet he's never answered me, not once. His own daughter."

Luke felt anger boiling up inside him. Hermes hadn't done any more for him, either. Their fathers weren't fit to run the world. There were probably countless other demigods like himself, abandoned. Someday, he'd avenge them all.

"How long can we keep this up, Luke?" Thalia demanded. "How long can we keep running? Is there no place for us in this world?" She slammed her fist into the ground and sparks erupted. Thalia flinched, quickly checking herself.

Luke remained silent. He could see a few bright stars glowing in the blackness of the night sky. "I don't know, Thalia, but no matter what happens, the two of us will always, always be a family."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

* * *

><p>Little did they know, that night, someone, somewhere out there was thinking of them. "Remember, Grover, your duty is to protect Thalia and Thalia alone," Chiron said in a low voice. "Bring her safely to Camp Half-blood."<p>

"I understand, sir."


	2. The Convenience Store

"Luke, wake up. Wake up!"

Luke's eyes opened. Thalia was bent over him, shaking his shoulder. Light shone through the open door of their safe house. Judging by the blinding light, it was late morning already. "What time is it? Why didn't you wake me up?"

"I _did _wake you!" Thalia said. "Come on, I'm hungry. Let's go and nick something from the convenience store like we planned yesterday.

Luke sat up. It took a while for his eyes to adjust to the light. And then it hit him. Neither of them had been keeping watch that night. Thalia herself must have just woken up as well.

As comprehension dawned on Luke's face. Thalia couldn't help but snort. Luke always woke up a little disoriented in the morning. Actually more than a little. She remembered how Luke had once poured a bucket of ice water in her face to wake her up one morning. Luke had once mentioned that Thalia muttered a lot in her sleep, too. Her face heated at the memory. She hadn't said anything embarrassing, had she?

"Thalia?" Luke was looking at her in a bemused way.

She snapped herself out of her trance. "The convenience store, remember?"

"Right." Luke looked a little embarrassed at having forgotten

Luke was dreaming of the candy bars they sold at the convenience store as they trudged through the woods. It had been so long since they'd dared go back. He remembered the last convenience store they'd left when their safe house had been burnt down. They usually considered themselves lucky running into a monster a week. They'd been on the move for a couple weeks, building safe houses every few days, trying to throw the monsters off their scent. His guess was that they'd be able to stay at this safe house for a good few weeks, if they were lucky. They'd never met two monsters together, though. Luke shuddered at the idea of two hellhounds cornering them together. They'd barely manage to survive one attack only to meet another.

"Luke." They'd reached the edge of the woods. Luke sprinted across the street, ignoring the red lights, with Thalia a step behind him. As they stepped into the convenience store with their faces carefully hidden, it was the storage room that first caught Luke's eyes. He elbowed Thalia, nodding in that direction. Thalia's eyes widened, taking in his meaning. Making sure nobody else was watching, they quickly dashed behind a row of shelves.

"The storage room?" Thalia hissed.

"Yeah." Luke quickly bent down. It was locked.

"Can you unlock it?" Thalia's eyes weree alight. "Do your thing."

Luke had been secretly hoping that it would be unlocked, but no such luck. He hated doing his thing.

"Please? It's so cool," Thalia said, flashing those blue eyes of hers.

Luke sighed, relenting in spite of himself. He put his hand on the lock. "It's got an alarm attached to it, I think."

"Can you disable it?"

"Probably." Luke could feel the different combinations running throughout the lock. He concentrated hard, and the lock clicked. He didn't really like to advertise his abbility, because it inescapably marked him as a son of Hermes.

"Cool," Thalia whispered reverently. "You're so good."

Luke turned red. Why did he like hearing that so much? But Thalia had already pushed past him into the storage room. He followed, shutting the door quietly behind him. Inside the dark little room were shelves upon shelves of goods stacked on one another. Packages of chips, rows of chocolates, columns of food.

"Woah!" Luke said.

"This is amazing! We could never have gotten away with so much out in the actual store." Thalia grinned at him, and Luke felt his heart plummet. Thalia headed straight for the food shelf. She opened her pack and began stuffing muffins inside, always careful not to take too much.

"You know, Thalia, if you don't want to get us caught," Luke said, "You might want to make less of a racket."

Thalia stopped stuffing her pack to send him a death glare, one that she usually reserved only for him. He had to admit, she struck an impressive figure in her black leather boots and her punk-styled clothing.

"Alright, alright." Luke began taking candy bars and biscuits off the shelves. There were cans of dried fruit up on the top shelf, but Luke couldn't reach them. Thalia, however, had other ideas. Using the shelves as rungs to a ladder, she scaled the shelf and started tossing down cans to Luke. She heaved herself up so that she sat on the top shelf. Luke wondered at her being afraid of heights but not sitting atop ten-foot tall shelves. _Clang!_

Luke and Thalia both froze. Luke had missed a can, and it had clattered loudly on the ground. Putting a finger to his lips, Luke quickly made his way to the door. He inched it opened. He could hear swift footsteps. Someone had heard and was coming towards them. Luke panicked and signaled to Thalia. Instantly, she leapt off the shelf and ducked behind it. Luke joined her behind it just as the door swung open.

"Amelia, are you sure you heard something?" asked a man's voice.

"Positive."

Thalia looked at Luke, eyes wide in panic. The man was blocking the exit. He hadn't seen them yet, but he probably would soon. Luke cursed himself silently. The man flipped on the lights. Luke was momentarily blinded by the yellow-white light. He blinked. The man was making his way towards them, slowly. _Damn. _The woman was now blocking the door, while the man wove his way through the shelves.

Thalia locked eyes with Luke. She knew exactly what he was thinking. "You take care of the woman, I'll take care of the man," she whispered. The man was coming closer and closer to their hiding place. One wrong move, and either him or the woman would see them. "Separate on my mark." Thalia hesitated. "Now!"

The man's head snapped up at the yell, but Thalia was too quick for him. She slammed against a shelf, and, instinctively, the man leapt out of the way. But Luke had seen the trick coming. He couldn't remember how many times Thalia's had used it. Taking advantage of his momentary unbalance, she threw her weight against him, knocking him to the ground. Before he had time to react, she was leaping over the fallen shelf, barreling towards Luke. Luke swept the woman's feet out from under her, and before she had time to react, he'd barreled past her, Thalia right behind him.

"Shoplifters!" screamed the woman. Instantly, a dozen people looked up. One member of the staff made a grab for Thalia, but missed. The rest either cowered behind the shelves or planted themselves in front of the entrance. It was two against six, with the other customers scattering. Luke slammed his backpack into one as Thalia knocked another shelf down. The staff scattered, and the entrance was wide open. Thalia leapt over the shelf and they broke into a run, the manager shouting threats at their backs. They barreled down the street, knocking down people as they ran. By the time they made it to the safe house, Luke was winded. Thalia kicked open the door and deposited her pack on the ground.

Luke tossed Thalia the canned fruit they'd picked up, and she accepted it grudgingly. She sat down next to Luke. It was high noon already. "So, what now?" Luke said. Truthfully they hadn't had a moment's peace the past few weeks, furiously trying to throw the monsters off their scent. He'd almost forgotten what it was like to have an evening off just to relax.

Thalia stretched her legs straight, leaning against the wall of their safe house. "Well, let's try some javelin practice after lunch, shall we?"

"Okay." Luke finished off a muffin and took a drink of water. Thalia, who'd already eaten her can of apples, was cleaning her collapsible Mace canister with a rag. She had a muffin in her mouth, too. By the time they'd finished eating lunch, the sun was blazing above them.

In a few minutes, Thalia and Luke were facing one another, both grinning. "Ready?" Luke said.

"Go!"

Immediately, Luke brought his javelin up to block Thalia's first strike. Thalia parried, and swung her javelin over her head to gain momentum. Luke took his chance and thrust his javelin point at Thalia's chest, but she dodged and brought her javelin sweeping in an arch straight at Luke's head. He ducked, and Thalia's javelin missed his head by inches. Luke attacked again, copying Thalia's previous move. Thalia ducked as the javelin swung over her head and tried sweeping Luke's legs off the ground. Luke, however, saw the trick coming and dodged, thrusting his javelin at Thalia, who was now on the ground. She grabbed the shaft of Luke's javelin and yanked it down onto the ground beside her, leaping up.

The two circled each other, each waiting for the other to strike. It was Thalia who made the first move. Throwing all her weight into the move, she knocked Luke's javelin aside with a sweep of her own. Luke's guard was wide open now, and Thalia brought her javelin down only to meet his again. She twisted hard, and Luke's javelin fell with a clang, hers an inch from his chest.

Thalia grinned.

"Teach me that move!" Luke demanded.

And so they spent the rest of the afternoon practicing over and over again. Never before in her life had Thalia felt more relaxed. It had been weeks since they'd had time to practice for an entire evening. At night, Luke lit the kerosene lamp and sat next to Thalia, eating the food they'd stolen from the convenience store.

Luke was telling a joke to Thalia, but he failed to continue as they both began laughin hysterically. Thalia couldn't control herself. She laughed until her stomach hurt, with Luke, her best friends, alongside her, And in that instant, Thalia realized why Luke meant so much to her. Family wasn't about blood, it was about loyalty and love. Luke had been her family when she'd had none, and he'd given her a new hope. Never before had she realized just how precious hope was. He'd given her something to live for.

Luke seemed to be on the verge of choking. Thalia thumped him on the back, hard. Luke recovered himself. "Anyways, do you want to ear another story? No? Well, I'll tell it anyways. See, there was once a young demigod, a son of Hermes, who was on the run. He was incredibly clever, not to menion handsome as well." Luke grinned. Thalia had a distinct feeling that he was describing himself. Luke went on, telling story after story about his clever tricks, and about how he'd once broken into a hotel and slept in it for a night and sneaked out the next day, leaving everybody completely confounded.

Finally, Thalia couldn't contain her laughter anymore. She could just picture a younger Luke, breaking into the hotel with his sneaky look, and laughing over it with himself later. The laugh hitched in her throat, and she doubled over. Luke started to laugh, too. Never before had she felt so free.

The candlelight danced in Luke's eyes, illuminating them. For a second, they looked almost gold. Thalia shivered. The momentary flash of gold sent a chill down her back. She leaned against the wall of their safe house, eating her muffin. Luke was next to her, also silent. Thalia sighed. How long would it be before she could feel another night like this? Not attacks, no fights, just peace.

"Keep teaching me that move?" Luke asked.

"Tomorrow," Thalia promised, a smile tugging at her lips.

"You still can't beat me at hand-to-hand combat," Luke said.

"You know, if it weren't for the fact that I like you so much, I'd have killed you by now," Thalia said. It was an oblivious comment, but Luke reddened.

"Well I am pretty much the only one who can play pranks on you and not get electrocuted," he said.

Luke watched as Thalia ate ardently. The light warmed her cold blue eyes, which were still roving around the safe house, as if expecting an attack at any moment. Right now, sitting in their safe house, Luke was the happiest he'd been in weeks. "Hungry, are we?" he said, and Thalia devoured another biscuit.

Thalia stopped eating to glare at him. By now, he was so used to her death glares that he laughed. After a moment, Thalia's scowl faded.

And so the two of them ate, each laughing at the other's jokes and relaxing for the first time in weeks. It was a wonderful sensation, leaning against the wall of their safe house, eating, and laughing. Luke was using Thalia for target practice as he launched muffins at her. She was laughin, dodging, and trying to get close enough to tackle him. It ended in Thalia pinning Luke to the ground. She was laughing, and Luke was wrestling her again. In the end, Luke surrendered and they finished eating, sitting back to back. Luke could feel Thalia beside him, and he leaned against her, soaking in her warmth. She handed him a muffin. "I'll take first watch."

"I'll stay up with you for a while." Luke said.

Thalia eyed him suspiciously, but she followed him out of the safe house. Outside, Thalia leaned against the wall of their safe house. Above her, countless constellations glittered in the sky. Kallisto, Orion, Andromeda…

"Thalia?"

"Yeah?"

"What's wrong?'

"Nothing."

But Luke could tell that something was wrong. They stood in silence for a few more minutes, each looking up at the night sky and waiting for the other to speak. Finally, Luke broke the silence. "Should we move on again tomorrow? Build another safe house a couple miles from here?"

"No," said Thalia. She wanted to stay here as long as possible, to hold onto this shred of a home for as long as she could.

Gently, Luke slid his fingers through Thalia's. Thalia's breath caught. She could feel Luke next to her, see his figure out of the corner of her eyes. It was if time had frozen. And then Luke was facing her, his blue eyes seemingly lit up, his smile wide. Without warning, unbidden memories came rushing.

_Watching the safe house they had built with their bare hands burning down. Luke sparring with her, using the very moves she had taught him. And of course, despair. That feeling that engulfed her when she stared into the sky, knowing that it was just a matter of time before her family was torn apart again. After all, that was what always happened, wasn't it? Lying next to Luke on the damp grass, staring up at the starry sky, Luke's fingers around hers. The third night in a row without being attacked. Falling asleep next to Luke in their safe house. Sitting in their safe house next to Luke, eating the remains of their food, and feeling, for the first time in her life, happy. Praying, night after night for her father. Curse him.  
><em>

"Thalia?" Luke said quietly.

"Hmm?" Thalia snapped herself out of her trance.

"Are you alright?"

Thalia didn't answer. She wanted this moment to last as long as possible, to hold on to this feeling for as long as she could. Because she knew that it would end. Right when she thought her family was complete, right when she'd found a home, it had been broken.

Luke seemed to understand. He tilted his face so that their eyes locked. He leaned on the wall of their safe house next to her. For a long moment, neither of them spoke. Thalia felt her heart thudding against her chest, and it wasn't because of the cold. Luke had closed the space between them so that they were barely an inch apart. It was deathly silent, with the occasional snap of a branch or the hoot of an owl. Above them, the moon was a crescent, surrounded by a thousand glittering lights. Peace. Something Thalia had not felt for weeks. Rights now, right here, she felt at peace with the world. But it wouldn't last.

She shivered as a sharp wind blew, and Luke put an arm around her waist. Thalia leaned against him. Luke was the only solid thing in her life right now.

"What is it, Thalia?" Luke asked quietly.

"What?"

"You're thinking about something. I can tell. It's the only time you don't scowl as much."

Thalia kicked him in the shins. Despite her murderous glare, Luke was grinning. "I meant it. You've been acting different lately. Almost like…last time." The words hung in the air. A few weeks ago, they'd been attacked by a Fury at their safe house, a different one from this. Something had been taken out of Thalia as she'd watched their safe house, their home that they'd built with their bare hands, burn to the ground.

Luke fell silent, his grip tightening around her fingers. Ever since he'd first met her, Luke had been terrified of losing her. But as time passed, he'd learned to enjoy the good moments for as long as possible, to live those few moments of real life to the fullest. Because all good things came to an end.

Luke bit into a candy bar. Thalia started, her eyes widening. "That was in my pocket!" Sure enough, the candy that had been in her jacket pocket just minutes ago was gone. "You—you—"

Luke laughed, his blue eyes twinkling mischievously. "You don't know it was me."

Thalia tackled him, shoving him onto the ground. Luke was stronger than, her, as he'd always been, being two years older than her. For a few seconds, they wrestled on the grass. Luke grappled with his uninjured arm, but even so, Thalia could barely keep up with him. And then Thalia laughed, the sound breaking from her, freeing itself into the night air. She doubled over. It had been so long since she'd last felt this. Luke was laughing too, and for the first time in weeks, Thalia was _happy._

Somehow, the grapple ended in an embrace, with Luke whispering in her ear, promising her that it would be alright. Thalia wanted so badly to believe him, and right then, right there, just for a moment, she did.

**Author's Note:**

**Thank you to all those who reviewed. Please give me some ideas on what kinds of problems (monsters) Luke and Thalia might face. Annabeth, is going to come into the story pretty soon, and eventually Grover too.**


End file.
